Caldwell County was hoping to show it had closed the gap on Mayfield in Class 2A’s 1st District. But the Cardinals showed Friday night that they still have a firm grasp on the district’s top spot.
Gray Robbins passed for 238 yards and three touchdowns as Mayfield routed Caldwell 45-7 at War Memorial Stadium.
The Cardinals intercepted four Caldwell passes — returning two of them for touchdowns.
Anderson Smith picked off three passes, returning one 47 yards for a score and another 43 yards to paydirt. He also hauled in a 30-yard scoring pass on a 4th-and-20 play in the first quarter.
Smith’s early grab helped Mayfield take a 7-0 lead. But Caldwell matched that when Daelyn Lander found Dayton Wilson open deep. Wilson initially juggled the ball, but latched on and took it 60 yards to the end zone. Landon Lanham’s extra point tied the game at 7-7 with 9:09 left in the first quarter.
But that turned out to be the biggest highlight of the game for the Tigers, who suffered their first loss and are now 6-1.
Mayfield answered wih a 13-yard TD pass to Josiah England.
Smith had his first interception return for a touchdown on the next series as the Cardinals quickly extended their lead to 21-7.
Robbins hit Ashton Flint for a 21-yard scoring toss in the second quarter as Mayfield got to halftime with a 28-7 advantage.
Caldwell moved the ball at times against Mayfield, but the Tigers could never reach the end zone again.
Instead, England scored on a 6-yard run in the third quarter, then Smith picked up his second pick-six to make it 42-7.
Jason Melendez kicked a 31-yard field goal late in the fourth quarter to finish the scoring.
England ran for 86 yards on 16 carries for the Cardinals, who had 166 yards on the ground and 401 total yards in the contest.
Meanwhile, Caldwell’s passing game struggled to find any rhythm, going 7 of 19 for 108 yards with the four interceptions.
Lander ran for 59 yards on 11 carries while Colson Mattocks had 46 yards on 12 attempts.
Dayton Wilson had four receptions for 101 yards for the Tigers, who had 116 yards rushing and 224 total yards.
Both teams are off next week.
Caldwell will go to Todd County Central in two weeks.
Mayfield (6-1) will host Trigg County on Oct. 16.
